By Matt Halverson, UWEC Sports Information
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire women's volleyball team (21-7, 3-2 WIAC) notched a conference win against the University of Wisconsin-Stout Wednesday night (17-25, 25-13, 25-19, 25-23).
The Blugolds started off slow, dropping set one to the Blue Devils after a six-point run to start the match. The tides turned drastically in Eau Claire's favor after that however, as the fired-up Blugold offense came out. Kasey Schumacher (So.-Minooka, Ill./Minooka Community) put together a serving rally, helping lift the Blugolds to a 16-3 lead midway through the second set. They would finish off the set to even out the match with a score of 25-13.
Set three was much tighter down the stretch with Eau Claire maintaining a small lead for most of the set before taking the last four points in the set to take a 2-1 lead.
The fourth set opened up the floodgates for the Blugolds coming down the stretch with a 12-24 lead. Eau Claire would have a hard time closing out the game, however, as the Blue Devils put together an 11-0 run facing match point to keep the pressure on. The Blugolds would eventually come out victorious in the end though, due to a ball handling error by Stout's Emily Bialka after coming within one at the end of the set.
"Any win, like I've said all season, is a big win in this conference." said head coach Kim Wudi.
Heading into the final six games of their season, the team will face two more conference opponents in the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.
Keagan Kinsella (Jr.-Chanhassen, Minn./Chanhassen) led the Blugolds in kills with 11 total in the victory.
"I was just focusing on being fast," said Kinsella. "My favorite thing is going up when everyone works together."
Zorn Arena was full from beginning to end for Breast Cancer Awareness night. The bleachers were overflowing with pink shirts sold by the team to raise money for the American Cancer Society.
The volleyball team will be traveling to Iowa this weekend for their last non-conference tournament of the year at Coe College. Their first game is against Carroll University at 6 p.m.
